Hidden Beauty The Things Unseen
by Kitteekill
Summary: Death the Kid has a past, a past that all begin to wonder about. Why was his existence unknown to almost all at Shibusen? Who is his mother and why is she not there? KidxFemChrona Pairing.  Btw Chrona was a girl in the manga so please no arguments!
1. Chapter 1

Chapter One: The Unspoken Words

Kid looked desolately at his notes, knowing that he would have to go back and repair them later. They were so hideous that they repulsed him, as usual. If only the teacher didn't talk quite so quickly! Shaking his dark head, the glowering boy slid the notes carefully into his well-arranged folder, in which he kept in a well-arranged bag. All things inside these items were symmetrical, as they should be. The sound of the door slamming caused him to jerk slightly, dropping his folder. Swearing, he bent to pick it up. Two months after the defeat of the Kishin, and still he found himself jumping slightly at loud noises and constantly on guard. Seeing his father nearly give his life to save Kid was something that the anal-retentive, shrewd child was unable to wrap his head around. His invincible father, his strong father, his caring father. Sighing, he thought ahead to the "Family Ball" that the Shinigami himself had planned for the coming weekend, where outside family would dress up along with the students and attend a dance to celebrate Shibusen's victory over the Kishin. But what victory was it? Relations had been ripped apart, people lost without a trace. No, this was still a victory, but a grim one. Frowning as he saw a scratch on the wood of the desk, he did not notice Crona as he accidentally bumped into her.

"S-s-s-s-sorry, K-k-k-k-kid-K-kun," the minor recluse stuttered and looked at her shabby boots, then blushed as her eyes began to dart around wildly as they always did, due to the last remnants of her extreme madness. Grinning lopsidedly, Kid placed a hand on her trembling shoulder, causing her to blush harder.

"No harm done. Coming to the dance the day after tomorrow?" Kid had really tried to make an effort to be kind to the new student, though Crona could be challenging at times. Many times.

"N-n-n-no, I-I-I d-d-d-don't t-t-think s-s-so. I-I d-d-don't k-k-know h-h-how t-to d-d-deal w-with p-p-p-people v-v-v-very w-w-well." Her cobalt eyes were downcast, and a stab of sympathy went through the heir to Death City.

"Hey, if I have to be alone with my father, I'm not sure I'll know how to deal with _that._" Kid quipped, putting an arm around her and guiding her out of then now empty room. Shivering for no apparent reason, Crona closed her eyes to stop the twitching. That's when she felt it, that sharp pain that came right before…

"Oi! Hands off, little OCD reaper-boy. Crona here doesn't need _you _around!" Yelled Ragnarok, grinding his fists into Crona's shaggy pink hair. Crying out in pain, she tried to swat the weapon away, but it did no good. "Idiot! Worthless! You know what I think? I think that you like-"

"No one asked your opinion," muttered Kid, bringing his fist down on Ragnarok, suddenly afraid of what was just about to pop out of the Demon Sword's mouth. Abruptly, a notion popped into the boy's head, since he suddenly felt guilty about letting Crona go back to that cell of hers, all alone. Oh, god, he must be turning into Maka. Disregarding such… "Why don't you come to Liz', Patty's, and my place for a while to hang out? It would be fun!" Enthused Kid, already steering her towards the door. Besides, he hadn't wanted to be alone with Liz and Patty after what had happened after the battle with the Kishin…

_Kid had strode in and seen his father's still critical state, and paled. Surely, he had thought, he would not have done this to himself were it not for me. I'm not worth it. Everyone knows that. Unable to stop himself, he had rushed over to check his father's health, much to the surprise of his peers. But, despite his airs, the adults at least knew he cared deeply for his father. Also, most of them knew why he had remained anonymous to the students at Shibusen before attending, whereas normally he would be seen with his father at most all times... To the even greater shock of the peers, Crona was the next to run over, and carefully assured Kid that he would be alright._

"_Surely a man with a heart as pure as his has something stronger than Black Blood in him." That was what she said. Those words had caused Kid to remember darker times, where his honorable father had been but a frightening ghost of his mother's past to him. Those dark times brought stinging tears to his honey colored eyes, ad he bowed his head, ashamed of them. They had all sat in silence as he held his father's gloved hand and waited for the pointless tears to dry. Liz and Patty had wanted to talk to him about it, but those tears were of matters much too deep for their comprehension. Crona, though, had seemed to understand perfectly with that soft look on her face and hard sympathy in her eyes. _

The walk to his manor was a long and quiet one, but Crona didn't mind. The perfectly symmetrical double doors were opened simultaneously by the ever meticulous Kid, and the pink-haired girl walked in quickly, not wanting to let in any draft. She took off her shoes where she saw Kid's, as well as two other pairs, and glanced shamefacedly at her blistered and filthy feet. Unconcerned, Kid gave her a pair of house-shoes and continued on, with the orders to make herself at home. To Crona, this meant only one thing. So, she chose the nicest looking corner and curled up in it, asylum-style.

"Hey, Kid, why is there something in the corner of the room? It's kind of black and hunched…" called Liz, her cowardice shining through full-force. Smirking, Kid walked over to Crona and lifted a strand of lavender-pink hair for Liz to see. A small _ooooh _of recognition came from the blonde, and Crona lifted her pale face. Smiling vaguely, she muttered something about a Steve corner and dragged towards them in that funny way that she moved. Shoulders slightly hunched, one arm gripping the other, feet slow and sluggish. Yes, dragging was the best way to describe it. As she did this, Kid couldn't help but notice the light bruises that dotted her face and what was visible of her long neck, the purple shadows under melancholy eyes letting him know that sleep had yet to visit her.

"S-s-s-s-sorry…" trailed off a rather shaky Crona, squeezing her arm as she apologized. Kid was alarmed to see how hard she gripped it and gently pulled her hand away. Shyly, she stepped forward to greet Liz and the freshly appeared Patty, who was clutching a paper giraffe with the neck crushed in. Oh, Patty. Crona gave a weak smile as Liz pulled her in for a tight hug and then looked her over.

"You're going to the dance the day after tomorrow." It wasn't a question; with Liz, it never was.

"Ummmm… I guess."

"I'm going to get you ready. That's that. You'll be here at five, that'll give me two hours to make you _fabulous._" Crona looked alarmed, so Liz put an arm around her frail shoulders. "Don't worry, Patty and I know what we're doing."

"I don't know how to deal with this!" Crona wailed, sinking to the ground. This time, all three of the bystanders laughed.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two: A Rose by Any Other Name

Crona walked slowly up the path to Kid's house, dreading the appointment forced upon by Liz. Sighing, she looked up at the building and slid inside, her narrow body easily sliding through the small opening of the door. She couldn't open it very far; the loss of the madness had also resulted in the loss of her before incredible strength. Crona missed it in a way, for it had made her not quite so pathetic, not quite so worthless.

As soon as her feet hit the neatly polished wood of the entryway, her arms were seized, her shoes removed, and she was dragged upstairs. And so the torture began. It began at the feet, where the Thompson sisters pedicured with speed to perfection, and moved up the body with moisturizer (Crona still shudders at the memory of the flowery smell, which she secretly liked, but didn't think suited her at all). The petite figure studied the pale pink paint that coated her now perfect toes, matching her hair to the hue of course. Finally, two hours later, with Liz and Patty alternating between taking care of her and readying themselves, Crona was finished. The sisters proudly led her to right behind the doors leading to the foyer, then went to meet the others. Maka, Soul, Black Star, Tsubaki, and Kid waited anxiously in the foyer, all excited to see what Patty and Liz had done with their Crona.

"Now presenting…" started Patty, in her girly trill.

"The product of two, long hours…" Liz continued, gesturing towards the door.

"Cro~na! You can come out now!" They chorused together, pulling the doors open. Stepping out bashfully, she clutched her arm and looked up slowly. A collective gasp rang out throughout the room, but none rivaled the one of absolute shock from Kid. He was justified in this, however, as anyone who saw her in that moment would agree. Their gazes started at the low, strappy silver heels around the perfectly attended feet. Next it traveled to the blue chiffon dress that matched her eyes that cut to a couple inches above the knee, showing off her surprisingly good legs. The dress was a simple V-neck that cut up to the base of the neck in the back and came down about three inches below her collarbone in the front. A small silver necklace adorned her pale neck, making its length look graceful instead of awkward. Her choppy hair was combed neatly (for once) so that it looked somewhat chic instead of raggedy, and a pale gloss covered her lips. She was _beautiful. _

"C-_Crona?_" This time it was Kid's turn to stutter, slowly reddening from chin to hairline. She looked at him and blushed too, and there was a long silence before there was an awkward consent that they should go ahead and get going. And get going they did, the beauty in the center being none other than the one fearful girl who at first was nothing but an opponent to beat.

When they walked in, the room froze. Tsubaki in her tall grace demanded attention with her long legs and big eyes, with a glowing Black Star in tow. Maka looked soft and sweet, and Soul had a sort of classic look to him that made the rough boy almost debonair. Liz and Patty wore identical pink dresses, and Kid looked simple and traditionally handsome in his suit. But the true source of the attention was Crona, and she found herself hiding behind Kid to keep them from staring. Well, it didn't stop them, but at least she _felt _better.

They stood a bit off from the stage, and when seven o'clock struck, Kid walked up on stage to do a proper introduction, for he often found those of his father to be somewhat lacking. This time, Black Star merely stood to the side and looked on. The fight with the Kishin had bestowed a sort of maturity on the seven who had been in the ring with him personally. Crona didn't need any more; she was quite too somber as it was.

"Students and families, thank you for attending tonight on behalf of the Shibusen faculty and staff. As you know, the recent defeat of the Kishin has been a great triumph for us all and has shown the strength of the past and future generations of weapons and technicians. Your support tonight is appreciated, and now is a time for bonding and healing; for losses and finding new hope. So please, enjoy the Family Ball tonight and savor this time we have spent together as one body and one force against the Kishin." Kid stepped down from the platform to a thunderstorm of applause, and a catchy, sort of jazzy tune began to play out across the hall. Families flooded together, assimilating into a pulsing mass of vitality and life, of joy and of fellowship.

"Th-That w-w-was a r-r-really g-g-g-g-good s-s-speech," Crona said softly, putting a hand on his shoulder. Kid smiled and thanked her, then led her to where the others stood. A tall woman with blonde hair and green eyes was embracing Maka. _She's a spitting image! How symmetrical! _Thought Kid as he watched his friend and the woman he assumed to be her mother. Black Star and Tsubaki were talking to a man with jet black hair and sapphire eyes like those of the tall girl, and by them another black-haired woman with charcoal eyes. Maka's father watched her mother with doleful eyes and an frown on his lips. They both solidly ignored him.

Kid was finishing filling a sparkling lemonade for Crona and himself when he heard his name yelled across the room by a voice he hadn't heard in a long time. Turning slowly and gritting his teeth, he saw a woman with onyx hair and golden eyes like his rushing towards him. She reached him and the others, and they looked from Kid to the woman and back to Kid again.

"Mother. You were the last person I expected to see here."


	3. Chapter 3

**AN: Thank you my lovelies for commenting and favorite-ing! Also, thank you for not starting the whole Crona is a girl/boy/it whatever. For anyone who wonders about it, please let me explain why there is so much discord! **

**English Dub Anime: Boy**

**In Japanese with/without English subs: It**

**Manga: Girl **

**Anyways, on to the story! :3**

Chapter Three: Ghosts of a Past Remembered

"Mother. You're the last person I expected to see here." Kid's voice was as cold as the look on his face when he addressed the woman that was supposedly his mother. The others found themselves alarmed; he had a look much like one who has just met Excalibur. They looked back and forth once more, and then chorused in unison.

"You have a _mother?" _Kid gave them a dry look of exasperation.

"No, I popped out of a hole in the ground by magic one dewy-freaking-spring morning. What do you think?" Patti laughed and began chanting 'Kid is a flower! Kid is a flower! Yay!'.

"B-b-but K-k-kid K-k-kun d-d-doesn't s-s-s-seem h-happy t-to s-s-s-see h-h-his m-m-mother," choked out Crona, who seemed to have a great deal of difficulty saying the word mother. He realized what it must seem like to someone whose mother was as horrible as Medusa was, and he patted the top of her head gently as a sort of reassurance that it was not unjustified. Shinigami-sama then appeared, as a rabbit might out of a hat, a tentative expression on his face.

"Kid-Kun," he began, poking his fingers together, "I invited her here. I asked her to come because you know it was family night and I thought that maybe it would be nice for us all to be together!" he clapped his humongous white hands together, and Kid gave his father a dirty look.

"I don't recall ever stating that I wanted to see this woman, and as to where this notion that we were a family came from all of a sudden, I wonder. Whatever happened to what a shame I was? What happened to being glad to be rid of me? SO now you come to see the child that you didn't even want in the first place out of the blue? Classic," Kid raged, his voice crackling with a dulled pain of years gone by. Maka understood immediately, it didn't take Soul long after, then Tsubaki, then Liz and Patty, ,then everyone else except Black Star, _and then _Black Star. _He was an accident. _

"Lorelei-senpai, you _were _sort of extreme after it happened you know," Mari-sensei said, sidling up, Stein at her side.

"I haven't had a drink since," sniffed the woman, making it quite obvious how it had come about. They all sighed, the small sweat-drops appearing on each of their heads. Mari shook her head at her, and Shinigami-sama was suddenly very serious.

"Kid-kun, you should talk things over with her-"

"The time for that is past, Father, long past." Kid was solemn, the sad look in his eyes making Crona very sorry for him indeed. Crona had a habit of shocking everyone when it came to Kid, and now was no exception. She grabbed his hand and dragged him towards the dance floor, where a slow song was starting. Startled, but pleased, Kid pulled her close and thanked her, so low that even she could barely hear it. He put his hands on her waist, with the clear indication that he wished to slow dance with her, and Crona blushed.

"I-I d-don't k-k-know h-h-how t-to-"

"Don't worry, it's easy. Just let me lead," he smiled, and pulled her hands up so that they wrapped around his neck, then moved his back down to her waist. They moved tentatively but in synchronization, and with each step they took they moved a bit closer. _Kid's grown, _thought Crona, noticing that they were no longer the same height but that even when she was in heels, Kid was a bit taller. Also, she noticed, his form was less childish than it had been just a few months ago. His before soft muscles were now giving him a lanky sort of handsomeness, his face a bit sharper and eyes a bit narrower. In Crona's opinion, he was now even better looking than before. He seemed to notice her staring and took his time looking at her as well, noticing that she had developed a small figure now, that her hair had grown, that her lips were fuller. Kid soon found himself with not an inch of room between him and his partner, and enjoying it. The delicate scent of flowers on Crona made him forget all but his own world, where this scene would never end.

The soft melody of the music possessed them, and before Kid could think about what he was going to have to deal with afterward, he pressed his lips to Crona's, and was exultant to see that she did not pull away. She pulled up on her tip toes, and he bent slightly, and they were together in total happiness. They were a storybook picture, the shy princess and the outcast of a prince, sharing a kiss at the ball. The words Kid's mother had once said to her friends still haunted him, but this kiss was proving her wrong. _'No one in their right mind would ever choose to be with a Shinigami. The stress, the humiliation, I'll regret it until the day that I die. I wish I had been in my right mind…' _Crona may not have ever been in what someone might call a right mind, but she was here, now, choosing to be with a Shinigami. This was joy.


	4. Chapter 4

**AN: Ohai there! (Eating cookie) This chapter focuses more on some other randomness, so you'll have to wait and see about Kid and his SINISTER past! But, uh… Watch out for Ragnarok! He's a rabble-rouser alright! :3 BTW: IRONY BEWARE**

Chapter Three: The Unimagined Problem

Kid ignored his mother and father both on the way out, and Crona hurried along, clinging to his arm. They soon made their way to the cell that Crona called home. As they stood on the threshold, the Shinigami leaned forwards and kissed her lightly once more, enjoying the pink flush that crept across her cheeks. It was, of course, at that moment that Ragnarok decided that he had had more than enough of Crona's lovey-dovey for the night and appeared, pinching Crona's cheek harshly.

"Stop kissing and go to bed already! Jeez! I don't know what kind of idiot would want to kiss you anyway!"

"I do, as a matter of fact," stated Kid, pushing Ragnarok's leering face away and this time nuzzling her neck, causing her to blush and suck in air, but by the way she dug her fingers into his shoulders, he could tell she enjoyed it. So, Ragnarok, quite annoyed, shoved the face of the affectionate boy into the somewhat unimpressive chest of Crona. He ground Kid's face in, and Crona tried to push Ragnarok off Kid. It was rather comical in appearance, but Crona was humiliated inside. She had always thought herself quite ugly, and to have someone this close to her body was only pulling at those insecurities. Eventually, they managed to get themselves sorted out, Ragnarok disappearing after a job well done, and the now fully mortified girl sunk to the ground and covered her chest with her hands. Reaching down, Kid picked her up easily and carried her into her room, depositing her gently on the bed and whispering a small goodnight. Crona could still feel his face on her chest, and cried the whole night long.

Crona was nowhere to be seen at school the following day. No one was really surprised; Crona probably didn't know how to deal with all the attention she would receive for being the girlfriend of the next Reaper. Kid went to her room immediately after the final bell rang, to see if she was alright after the night previous. If Ragnarok hadn't been attached to her back, he would have thrown him through the wall. He knocked on the door but received no answer, and let himself in to find her face down on the bed, this time in her normal dress, still crying her eyes out.

"You," Kid laughed, "are the saddest little person that I have ever had the pleasure to meet." At this Crona looked up, stared a moment, then hid in the corner muttering about not knowing how to deal. Ragnarok popped out, rubbing his fists into her pink hair again, and then twisting her nose. Kid walked over and held Ragnarok back, and hugged his girl with strength of a Reaper and with the sympathy of someone who knows what it is to feel so horrible about yourself you feel you'd be better off dead. "Won't you please tell me what's wrong, Crona?" This last part was whispered in her ear, and she turned red and began stammering out her explanation for her behavior.

"W-w-well… I-I-I… I-I m-mean…"

"What she means is that she knows she's ugly, so she feels weird when you do your creepy touchy-feely thing on her!" Cried Ragnarok with a sort of sick mirth, then continuing beating her up. Kid gritted his teeth; he _really _hated Ragnarok. Crona looked at him with piteous eyes and a pouting mouth, and Kid stroked her hair, once again knocking Ragnarok out of the way.

Eruka-Frog sat alone in her lab, smiling in a sinister sort of way. The snakes Medusa had planted in her had never all been removed, and now the evil bred like rabbits, eating away at her soul. Her magic mirror with a frog-shaped back showed Kid-kun petting Crona, and a wicked grin curved the witch's dotted mouth. _Oh dear, _she thought to herself, _this won't do at all. _Somewhere in Hell, Medusa was laughing.

Maka and Soul went by the manor home that Kid resided in to check on him later that evening, and was surprised to find him holding a sleeping Crona on his lap. The lines of panic that usually dominated her face relaxed, her hands locked around Kid's neck. He looked up and then smiled, gently setting Crona to the side. She balled up and whimpered, and Kid motioned for them to join him in his perfectly symmetrical kitchen.

"What's with her?" Soul asked, drumming his fingers on the marble counter. Maka leaned forward anxiously; there wasn't a day gone by that she hadn't worried about the mental health of her dear Crona.

"The other night Ragnarok… well, let's just say he was rather rude to Crona, and it resulted in the aggravation of her insecurities. So, I went by today to see if she was alright, and Ragnarok more or less told me the base of all her insecurities without her permission, and that upset her even worse. So, eventually she cried herself unconscious (I guess she didn't get any sleep last night), and so I took her back here to see to it that she was well-taken care of." Kid heard a small squeak from the door and turned to see a rather sleepy Crona, rubbing one eye with her fist and the other was staring sad and blue at all of them.

"K-Kid-k-kun? I-I had a b-bad d-d-dream that M-m-medusa's s-s-snakes h-had p-p-possessed t-the f-f-frog w-witch, a-and s-s-she w-was c-c-coming a-a-after m-me…"

"It's alright, Crona, I'm sure that can't happen." And with this, Kid proceeded to make tea for all of them, sending Crona back to the living room.


	5. Chapter 5

**AN: Guys, writing this chapter made me cry. It seriously made me cry. TT-TT I'm sorry Kid! I'll love you!**

Chapter Five: Kid Unsentimental

Kid sat alone in his room, having sent Crona, Maka, and Soul to their respective homes, and giving Patty and Liz instructions not to bother him. They had consented, but shot worried glances at each other before shrugging and walking off. So now, Kid sat alone, with nothing but his past to keep him company. He remembered it all, beginning to end.

_His first memory of the room was the most frightening, the room that his mother put him in to keep him out of her sight. When people were over, he would be locked in there all day, that room with the one broken toy truck and the grimy pillow in the corner. He would sit in the room and think about the mess, and over time, it bothered him to the point of mania. Hence his OCD. That, and the fact that he was constantly told how worthless and humiliating he was made him strive for perfection, that maybe once, she would be happy to see him. _

_As he grew up in that room of his, he learned to develop his hearing and listen through the walls to what his mother would say. "I can't believe that his father wouldn't take him, did he honestly think I wanted him?" "Ugly child, with those horrid stripes on his hair, just like his father's." "Sits there and tries to clean everything, stupid boy doesn't know that I have things the way I have them for a reason." "Thinking of pushing him off to his father by force soon, someone as softhearted as him won't let his child be out on the streets for long." "__No one in their right mind would ever choose to be with a Shinigami. The stress, the humiliation, I'll regret it until the day that I die. I wish I had been in my right mind." He didn't know why he kept listening; maybe he hoped that eventually she would acknowledge that he was hers, not just some mistake that she had made. Or maybe, it was just morbid curiosity. _

_ He had snuck out the day he met them; he was scouting out a good place to live when his mother kicked him out as she planned to the next day. This was the benefit of listening. He was now prepared. He'd been checking out a gulley that was back behind the run-down convenience store when she had crept up behind him, gun in hand. A cheap fur coat round her set shoulders, a smoldering cigarette in her mouth. Dirty blonde hair that hung low, covering the skimpy undergarment she used as a sort of shirt. Blue eyes filled to the brim with a desperate sort of malice stared him down, and he regarded her calmly. _

_ "Most kids wouldn't stare a mugger right in the face and smirk, sweetheart. Fork whatever's in your pockets over, or my sister and I might have it to take it by force," she snarled, shoving the gun up against his throat. So her sister was a weapon, huh? The sister must be a technician, then. How interesting. Sadly, Kid turned out his pockets, revealing an old button and some lint. "Patty! The boy's got nothing!" She hit him across the face. "Damn! He'll turn us over!"_

_ "So you're going to hit me for things I can't give too?" the girl and her now human-form sister turned to stare at him, and the younger one started to tear up. _

_ "Liz… Liz, look at them bruises on his arms and face. He's… he looks like he's got it rough, just like us." Liz and Patty stared for a moment, then the older one put an arm around him. _

_ "Alright, Kid, here's the deal. You tell us your story, and we'll see what we can do for you. You keep that bleeding mouth of yours shut, and Patty here can shoot you so that you don't change your mind about keeping it shut."_

_ "Um… Alright. I guess I should start by saying that I don't have a name. Mother didn't think it was necessary, since she usually didn't talk to me except to call me bad names. It would have been quite useless. I spent most of my time locked in one room with a single light bulb, a broken toy truck, and a filthy old pillow. When Mother did see me, she would either be insulting me or beating me. I learned to listen through the walls to her conversations, though I knew I'd never like what I heard, and just last week I heard that she was going to kick me out tomorrow, so I was down here looking for a suitable place to build camp until either my father learned of my situation and decided to take me in, or I found a better solution for myself. And then, I guess you know the rest." His yellow eyes were downcast and filled with shame, hands in pockets, odd, striped hair falling over his beaten and bruised face. _

_ "Why'd she hate you so much?" Patty leaned in, intent on the answer. _

_ "I, uh… I was an accident."_

_ "WHOSE?" the sisters chorused, leaning in even further. He flinched back slightly before answering. _

_ "You won't believe me if I told you, but I _am _telling the truth."_

_ "Try us."_

_ "Shinigami-sama's." _

_ "Really?" Liz asked, then examined the stripes on his head. "You're weird enough that I buy it. So you don't have a name, huh? Hmmm…. Kid of death…"_

_ "Death the Kid!" Patty cried, throwing her arms around him, and Liz laughed. _

_ "Death the Kid, I like it." And with this, Liz ruffled his hair and slid his button back into his pocket. That night, when he snuck back in, he smiled as he curled up on the floor with his threadbare blanket. Opening an old drawing he did when he was just a four years younger than the thirteen he already had to his name, he saw a stick figure with black hair hugging her son, face large and smiley. Giving the paper a cold smile, he shredded it slowly, and left the pieces on the floor for his mother to find when she came in the next day to kick him out, along with a note scribbled on the wall in a pencil he had found on the street earlier:_

_ I know you won't miss me, just heading out before you could take away the last bit of pride I had. Enjoy sleeping at night knowing that you made it so that I can't. –Death the Kid_

_ Looking proudly at his work, he crept out, leaving his miserable life behind him, and going on to the girls he had found to be twin pistols in need of a technician. Finally, somebody needed him. He grinned as he headed to the alley, whistling a western sort of tune. It was a month later that his mother's deeds had reached his father's ears, and he was offered a home in a manor home of his father's to have to himself. Liz and Patty were the one condition of Kid's, and he kept his street name. It was a memory of the best time in his life, learning that he wasn't worthless. He soon found his father to be warm and loving, and though the boy often shirked his hugs and brushed off his kind comments, he knew that Kid loved his father, and Kid knew his father loved him. His life was finally in place, finally he knew where he belonged. It was with Liz, Patty, and his father, and now with Maka, Soul, Black Star, Tsubaki, and most importantly, Crona. _


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: Top o' the Mourning! (yes that was a pun) Yet another depressing, yet heartwarming, chapter for you. Sorry I haven't updated in FOREVER, just had a lot to do. Again, I apologize, Kid. I must make your life horrible.**

**Kid- You really don't have to. **

**Crona- Here, I'll write you a poem!**

**All: NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!**

Chapter Six: Kid Uncontrollable

There were a couple of things off when Kid came downstairs the next morning. One was that Maka, Soul, Tsubaki, Black Star, Liz, Patty, his father, his mother (cringe), Mari-sensei, and Stein-sensei were all crowded into his kitchen, eyes melancholy. Another was that the picture on the wall was a bit to the right. Anyway, back to the more concerning one (after fixing the picture), he stood before them, face perplexed as Mari-sensei began to speak.

"Kid-kun, I'm so sorry, but it's Crona… She's missing, you see. All we could find in her room to show that anyone had been there at all was a knocked over chair." Kid froze, not quite able to process this bit of information, eyes going in and out of focus. As it hit him, his vision took on a red tint of rage, and he slammed his fist on the marble counter.

"Then what are you all doing here? We should be searching, we should be trying to find her! She could be hurt!" Cried Kid, His hair falling in his honey eyes. His visage wild, only Liz and Patty dared get near him. Putting a hand on his shoulder, Liz rubbed it gently, feeling him relax under her familiar touch. Patty wrapped her arms around his waist and squeezed, all the while assuring him that they _would _find her.

"We would begin searching, but we've no idea where to start! No leads, no evidence except for the chair, and-"

"The door. Was it locked, when you came to get her?" Kid was suddenly at full attention, an idea slowly forming in his mind.

"Yes, but… Wait a minute, that door only locks from the outside, which means…"

"Crona wasn't in her room when she was taken. That chair was like that to throw you off until the evidence could be disposed of. Likelihood is, it already has."

~oOoOo~

Crona struggled blindly against the shackles that held her against the wall of the dark room in a desperate sort of panic. No light, just like that room she lived in Medusa's house as a child… No, now was not the time to panic. But, panic could help if she still had the madness. No, nonsense, the madness was bad. The madness made her invincible. The old black blood stirred inside Crona, causing her thoughts to go in circles. A sob dragged from her throat as she thought of Kid, of his kind smile, of his welcoming arms.

The door opened slowly, and there stood Eruka, an alarming array of tools on a cart in front of her. Smiling wickedly in a way all-too reminiscent of her late mother, she crouched down in front of Crona, stroking her spine slowly. Ragnarok popped out, somewhat groggy, and the witch seized him by his pseudo-waist and grabbed one of her needles, then began to push it in. The witch laughed over Crona's screams.

~oOoOo~

For the third day that week, the fifteenth hour, Kid was out, searching anywhere, everywhere for Crona. Stein's old hideout, Medusa's uninhabited base, the sites where they fought Arachne. All of them empty, Kid would return home each time, exhausted, angry. He would sink down onto his sofa and stare at the wall, not even noticing the asymmetrical things around him.

_Where could she be? Who would've taken her? Why would they take her? How had they gotten into Shibusen? _Kid's head snapped up. She hadn't left Shibusen grounds between the time she had left his house and the time she had been going back to the main campus if she went the only route that they knew of, so that meant… Someone inside Shibusen knew where Crona was. The problem now was, how would he figure out who?


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: Hello there again! Did that cliffhanger on Crona kill you just a little? C'mon just a little? Right, onto the actual point of the note. I am taking out the parts where I write in Crona's stutter, because I am quite sure that you know about it by now! So, just **_**imagine**_** it in there :3 Enjoy, Read, Comment…. If you like….. that would be nice… **

**よんて****" ****くた****"****さい**!

Chapter Seven: Kid Unstoppable

"Crona, awaken." Eruka's voice broke through the haze of pain and emptiness that the pink-haired girl was floating in, eyes closed. She could open her eyes if she wanted to, but she was frightened of what she would see when she did. Would everything look normal? Or is this horrible wrongness inside reflected on the outside? It wasn't that something was there that it shouldn't be. It was that something wasn't there that should be. A slap across her face caused Crona to wince, and so, she dragged her lead eyelids up with dread, expecting to see something horrible. Instead, she saw something so impossible that she couldn't phrase it in her mind, couldn't look directly at it. So hard to explain, so dreadfully unbelievable that it was surely a nightmare of sorts. Crona fell into a dead faint, the image still burned into her mind.

_~Things Unseen~_

Kid looked his father square in the eye, daring him to tell him that his theory was too far-fetched to be possible. However, this was not the case. The elder Shinigami passed a hand over his face, sighing as he did so.

"I was afraid that this was the case." Kid gaped, he wasn't sure that he had heard right.

"Come again?"

"I said, I was afraid that this was the case. The only question is, which student might have done it? I wonder, Kid, do you know?" The Shinigami questioned his son, who promptly sank to the ground in despair at such a foolish question. "I'll take that as a no!" His father sang sunnily, then sank back into his musing state. Both cycled through each student they knew, easily seeing none of them as the culprit. How could they find Crona without that valuable resource? They couldn't exactly question every student in Shibusen; most of them didn't know where it was that Crona lived anyways. Some of them thought she was merely a rumor. How would they know who had taken her from them?

_~Things Unseen~_

Crona opened her eyes again for the second time that day, and shuddered. The ghastly sight was still there, but this time she was prepared for it. White irises with black crosses inside them for pupils in the otherwise human eyes, skin so white that she was positive that driven snow was shamed by it, inky hair falling into those disturbing eyes. A twisted smirk was warping the face into a frightening thing, and she apprehensively regarded the black clad muscles that were visible through the long sleeved shirt that he wore. Perhaps, were it not for the absence of the darkness inside her and the familiarity of the "person" in front of her, she would not have known what name to call him by.

"Ragnarok," Crona breathed, " how are you over there?" Laughing coldly, he made his way over and slowly caressed the place where he had once come out of. The girl shivered; this was all too weird.

"I'm my own person now. Aren't you happy?" He whispered in her ear, and she impulsively shoved him off. He snarled in anger and shook her by her hair, causing her to scream in pain. Pink strands came away on his fingers, and Crona rubbed her sore scalp. She had noticed her manacles were off; she wondered why Eruka would do that. Come to think, why would Eruka do any of this? Suddenly, her dream returned to her, and she laughed a crazy sort of laugh that caused Ragnarok's eyes to glaze over momentarily with the memory of time gone by. "_I'm sure that won't happen," _Kid had said. How wrong he had been. Irony, it seemed was, seeping through the walls.


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: Hi there! I know, it's been forever again, I'm SORRY! A lot to do in December, but I'm back and on track! More romantic mystery awaits, so please, sit back, relax, and enjoy the show… (raises imaginary red curtain to reveal old fashioned movie screen)**

Chapter Eight: Kid Unwavering

Crona hugged her bruised and beaten body, cowering in the dark of the room. It had been a month, a month of pain, a month of tears. Where was Kid? She had been so sure, so sure that Kid would come to her aid, so sure that he would burst in any moment now with that fierce look in his honey eyes. Instead, she had found herself with only darkness and the only reprieve from such being her own twisted mind. And then there was Ragnarok, hurting her, doing things like forcing kisses or kicking her in the ribs until she screamed and something broke. Sometimes there would be needles full of strange substances, or an odd mixture to drink that would make her vision fuzzy, to where she would wake up with dried blood coating her fingernails from where she had tried to scratch the foreign contaminants out from underneath her very flesh. She was even thinner, if possible, than before, and she was starting to contemplate what it would be like to die.

There was a bitterness that had begun to fill the small girl, a bitterness that caused her feelings for Kid to wear way. She had realized about a week back that these feelings came from the drug she was injected with daily. It would not be long before her wish for Kid would be gone completely, leaving her only with the growing dependence on Ragnarok. This, she suspected, was yet another effect of the drug. Numbness accompanied this bitterness, and there were no more tears left inside her, no more screams left to be torn from her throat. No, the Crona that had been dragged here was still at Shibusen, waiting all alone for Kid to come pick her up and take her to class.

_~Things Unseen~_

Kid had interviewed yet another student, finding no trace of guilt. It was all too mysterious. He went over what had happened right before she disappeared in his head all over again. She had been crying, so he had taken her back to his house, where she was asleep until… The nightmare! What had she said, that the frog witch was back, that the snakes hadn't left her… What if Crona hadn't just been hallucinating, what if Eruka took her? First a nightmare that someone was out to get her, then she disappears. He had to go tell his father.

"… I'm sorry, Kid, but I think you're too desperate for a solution. It's been over a month now. I hate to say it, but Crona's probably not coming back," Shinigami-sama sighed, putting a meant-to-be comforting hand on his distraught son's shoulder. Looking at his father in disgust, he slapped the hand away and stood from his kneeling position.

"It's not over until I see the body. I _will _find her, with or without your help. For me to give up now-" Kid was interrupted by a tall, raven-haired woman sashaying into the room.

"Shinigami-sama, are you ready to go?" Lorelei asked as the Shinigami stood, and then took her arm.

"What the hell?" Shouted Kid, looking at his parents.

"Well, Kid, you know, your mother and I decided to try being together for real! Now that you two have reunited and all, I thought it would be nice for us to be together once and for all," the masked man said firmly, then stepped out, calling for Lorelei to follow him.

"You know, you really _are _a nuisance. Just you wait, soon that dimwitted father of yours will be in the palm of my hand and I can get on with making sure you don't bother me again," hissed the woman who was supposed to be his mother, who then slapped him across the mouth and strode out, calling something about dropping an earring and sorry for the delay. Kid scowled; why did he have the sinking feeling that his mother had returned for more than just getting rid of Kid? What if there was something else that she wanted? Kid bolted upright from his spread-eagled pose on the floor. Someone inside Shibusen… Kid ran for his skateboard, and knew exactly where to go.


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter Nine: Kid Unleashed

The old house, a place he normally wouldn't have returned to if his life depended on it. Kid knew about the small, secret room that adjoined the main area, the one that he had spent his childhood in. Carefully packing up his skateboard, he crept around to the loose spot he knew would be in the fence, and wiggled in. His eyes narrowed with a cold determination. Sure enough, something wasn't right. Kid couldn't quite place it, but something was most definitely awry about the place.

Kid felt along the wall for the thin panel that he knew should be there, a thin panel that wasn't any good for escape but everything on both sides of the wall could be heard through. He still remembered the house so well; it was funny, the things that stuck with people in life. Sure enough, he found it, and heard Crona's small whimpers through the spot. Very lightly, he put his ear up against it as to hear better, and heard the voice he recognized as belonging to Ragnarok.

"… You're only making things worse for yourself, Crona. You should just give it up." Kid was surprised to hear Crona slam something back against the wall (assumedly a fist or an elbow), nearly breaking the panel.

"Not likely," came her dry whisper, and Kid's hands shook. He had always known his mother to be bad, but this was taking it far too far. He waited until he heard silence in the room, then pressed up against the panel, forcing it to finally give way. His golden eyes met Crona's sapphire ones in that split instant of pure joy, that her rescue had finally come. Kid crawled in and held her a moment, not daring say a word and shatter the moment. However, he pulled away when he saw Crona trembling violently, tears spilling from her eyes.

"… Crona?" There was something horribly wrong with her all of a sudden; Kid could tell just by looking at the sick misery on her face.

"K-kid, there's something I should tell you… The drugs they gave to me," Crona was holding her entire self away from him now. "The drugs, they… made me hurt when I thought about you… I can't really look at you…" Kid stepped away for a moment, gritting his teeth as he ripped his jacket, then tied the strip he ripped off around her eyes so that he could get her out of there.

Kid winced at the sight of the dark bruises on her face and body, and the way she was even thinner than she used to be, and the bruised and swollen lips that were pulled into a tiny frown. Her brow was furrowed, and Kid smoothed it gently with his long fingers, silently willing her to relax.

"That should hold you until we get back to Shibusen, at which point, if you so desire, I can be sure that I am permanently out of your sight," Kid promised, the thought of losing Crona causing him unbearable melancholy that no time could heal, but he would cope. Somehow, as to how he wasn't quite sure, he would keep his word.

Crona shook as Kid held her hand and eased open the door. She couldn't find the words to tell him that she didn't want him gone as he thought. She would figure it out, if not for herself then for Kid. She squeezed his hand, then sucked in air as she heard Kid curse under his breath. Ragnarok's voice, along with Erika's and Lorelei's, filled her ears, which she covered and cowered.

"Well, well, well…" sang Ragnarok, who was backed by the two women. Kid, however, was not concerned with their words. He knew every way in and out of this house, and they were blocking the main one. He was debating between a feint and a full on charge when Crona made up his mind for him.

Crona could feel Kid tense and made up her mind, doing the only thing she could think of to do to distract their opponents. She pulled off her makeshift blindfold, took one look at Ragnarok, and landed a shockingly powerful punch to his jaw. She could feel her aching knuckles protesting as she went in for another blow, and Kid saw his opening. He dashed in, grabbing Crona and kicking down the door, somehow managing to get his skateboard out through all his fumbling. He tied Crona's blindfold back on as he mounted her and then zoomed off, keeping his arms around her too-thin waist.

They landed at Shibusen, and he carried her to the infirmary, giving Dr. Stein a brief explanation of her situation, even the part about her not being able to be near him. Not waiting for a response, he stormed off, knowing that he would not let his professor see him cry. He walked straight to the Death Room, but froze when he noticed something horribly amiss. His father's mirror was shattered, the fragment littering the ground at his feet. Where could he be?


	10. Chapter 10 FINAL

Chapter Ten **[FINAL]**: Hummingbird Heart

Kid was speechless. The shattered mirror in the Death Room, right after his rescue of Crona… Right after his mother had taken his father out with her. He began running, until every spot in the school was searched, until every friend he had at Shibusen was trailing him, trying to figure out why he was acting as though he had suddenly gone mad. They followed him from the north to the south corners of the academy, eventually catching him.

"Kid, what the hell? You came out of the Death Room and started running like a bat out of hell. Care to explain what's going on?" Soul stared Kid right in the face, red eyes fixed on ocher ones.

"Not really but I suppose I must. I found Crona; long story short, she and Ragnarok are two separate people now, my mother really _is _evil seeing as she's the one who kidnapped her along with Eruka, and oh yeah, my own girlfriend now can't stand the sight of me due to special drugs. On top of that, the mirror in the Death Room is shattered and my father is missing. I don't think I missed anything beyond that," spat out the young Shinigami, aiming a punch at the wall. Soul stopped him as he pulled back for a second one; Kid's knuckles were bleeding already.

"Oh, Kid," sighed Maka, putting a hand atop his striped hair, "You should have just told us and saved time, that way we could've all helped from the start. Where do you think he might be?"

"He can't be at the old house, because that's where Crona was. Eruka's the other culprit in all this… Maybe her lab?" Kid reasoned slowly, trying to keep a cool head. They nodded in agreement and headed off to find Stein; they would need all help they could get.

~_Hidden Beauty~_

Crona's blue eyes fluttered open, and she gave a low whimper of pain as she tried to sit up. Beside her sat a weary looking Stein who was writing hurriedly in his notebook but looked up as she awoke. Giving his best attempt at a comforting smile (which Crona did not find comforting at all), he stood.

"The drugs are almost all flushed out of your system. You're going to be just fine," Stein assured her, though he sounded uncertain. Crona picked up on it immediately and, ignoring the pain, pulled herself into a sitting position.

"And Kid? Will I still not know how to deal with him?" She whispered, lower lip trembling with the start of tears. Stein froze; he could deal with the sight of various cut open animals, he would fight any deformed beast that came his way, but as for crying teenage girls… Well, his knowledge ended there. This was something that Spirit would be a whole lot better at than he, but he couldn't leave the girl alone.

"We're, uh, not sure about any lasting side effects," the Professor looked away, unsure of what else he could say. He started nervously twisting the oversized screw that protruded from his silvery hair. Crona broke down fully now, and he decided that now would be a good time to just give her a moment. He stood, and right as he was about to walk out the door, a group of flushed and breathless teenagers stumbled in.

Crona looked up and froze, for there stood Kid, and she felt… ill. She bit her lip and hid under her sheets, but not before he noticed. The others around him patted his shoulders sympathetically, but he shrugged them off. Kid recited their problem in a monotone, and Stein rushed out with a call of 'Leave this to Marie, Spirit, and I.' Maka silently motioned everyone out while Kid stared after him in disbelief, and Kid was shut in with Crona. _Maka, why would you do that? _He thought to himself, wringing his pale hands.

"K-Kid?" Crona stammered from beneath her sheet. He could see that she was curled up fetal style on her side, and he went to sit by her on the bed, smoothing the sheet down over her. He could feel her hummingbird heart, the way her body trembled with such vigor that Kid expected her to simply shake apart.

"Hmm?" He responded eventually, stroking her covered hair. Was this the best it was ever going to be?

"I think… I think that I should apologize," she was shaking even more violently now, and Kid tried to steady her.

"Why would you need to apologize? This is all my fault for not listening to you in the first place. I'm the one who brought her here, Crona, not you."

"I should apologize because I'm hurting you with this. I should apologize because I'm still not strong enough to protect you like you've protected me. I should apologize because," she hiccupped through her tears, voice growing stronger. "Because you deserve better than this."

"Find me any better and I would say you were a liar," he whispered. Crona stopped shaking under the sheet, and very slowly, she pulled it down so that her head was exposed. Time seemed to stop around her and Kid as she looked up and her face drained of color. _I will not look away. I will not hurt him again. _

"This isn't so bad," she murmured, then wrapped her arms around him, pulling him into a tight embrace. He was holding her so tightly that she was sure she would shatter, but she didn't care. There were worse ways to break apart.

"To the contrary, I think it's perfect," he replied, eyes alive for the first time since the night she had gone missing.

"Kid!" She exclaimed all of a sudden, realizing something very odd about him. "Your clothes… they're… _asymmetrical._"

"Suppose they are," he muttered, tugging at them distractedly and blushing. Crona smiled luminously; his OCD had been a huge detriment and now… that's when she knew. If Kid could defeat his complex, then she could defeat hers. Still smiling like the sun, she leaned in and touched her lips to his, not caring about the consequences. She didn't care that she hurt all over, she didn't care that someone could some in any moment, she didn't care that she would probably fall apart from the joy coursing through her veins. Her heart pounded in her chest and Crona couldn't seem to find enough air. A throat cleared from the corner and she whipped around to see the Professor had returned with an abashed looking Shinigami-sama.

"Oh dear, Kid, I didn't mean to alarm you, but I had accidentally tripped and broken the mirror. I was going to get someone to fix it," Kid's father explained, ducking his head. The boy in Crona's arms made a face so comical for all his shock that she began giggling madly. Kid took one look at her and joined in, their laughter carrying throughout the halls. Later they would be told that Lorelei had been caught along with Eruka, they would be told that Maka had kissed Soul upon hearing the news that Crona would be able to be around Kid, or that Black Star had cried, if just a little, along with Tsubaki. They would find that through everything, Kid would always see Crona's hidden beauty, and Kid would never again be unseen.


End file.
